Wow, the back and forth that is going on amazes me. I think people are confused about suffering, infirmities, persecution and trials. First and foremost no matter what you have been taught, these are not from God, he is not the author of evil or bad. There are two systems operating in this world, Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Darkness. The two Kingdoms collide on a constant basis
If you think God is using the kingdom of darkness to teach you, you are missing the whole point of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Yes, we suffer in this life, but the suffering is never at the hands of God.
I have said this over and over, read Mark 4: 13-20 Jesus specifically states if you do not understand this parable, you will not understand the Kingdom of Heaven and how it operates. In this world, when you take a stand on God's word, Satan comes immediately to steal the Word sown in your heart through persecution and afflictions..I am not denying we face suffering, persecution, and trials in life, I am denying it is God doing this to test you or see where you are at in the Kingdom.
When you take a stand for God, resistance comes. Try telling people today that God has said marriage is between a man and a women, try saying There is only one way to God, its through Jesus, try saying God heals, God is good, America was founded on Christian principles, abortion its wrong, sex outside of marriage is wrong. I promise you will suffer persecution, not only from the World, but also from people you sit in church with everyday. All the disciples, Apostles, Jesus himself suffered for the sake of the Word, but it was not sent from God. There is one exception. God made Jesus the scapegoat for all these things, he made him suffer for mankind one time for all people redeeming us from the curse of the Law. You do realize where ever you read a curse in the law, Jesus bore the punishment for that curse so you did not have to. He does not expect you to do what Jesus did on the cross that is why he used Jesus. Does anyone remember that God knows the end from the beginning? He already knows what you are going to do.
Satan and his Kingdom are who resist you on a daily basis. If you get sick, its not from God, if you get in a car accident, its not from God, if you lose a spouse or young child to sickness, disease, accident or anything that contradicts with Long life I will satisfy you and show you my salvation its not God.
I keep reading well God allows it. Well God allows rape, murder, sickness, disease, war and the list goes on and on. The key is God allows many things, but he is not the author of these things, men are. That is why Jesus said I give YOU the keys to the kingdom, whatsoever YOU bind on earth must be what is bound in heaven, whatsoever things you LOOSE on earth will be loosed in Heaven.
Men refuse to put Gods way of doing things in practice. Do you actually think if we truly loved one another there would be wars on this earth? Of course there would not be, but guess what? There are men out there on a daily basis who are purposely defying God and doing what the selfish dictates of their heart are prompting them to do and it affects us! Just look at ISIS!
We can miss God and cause undo suffering in our lives, but again, its was not by God's design. We can run to God in any situation but it will take time to walk through any situation as we apply the word of God. Peter tells us that God has given us all things that pertains to LIFE AND GODLINESS through the knowledge of him. In other things, you better know your covenant, what Jesus did for you, who you are in Christ and how to apply that covenant to your life. All of us are at different stages in our walk with God so it will vary with each individual.
We can complicate our lives by doing stupid things, like going out side and playing in the snow in shorts then getting sick. Who did this to you? God or your own foolishness?
In the 1980's I had a young son pass away and he is with God in heaven right now and to my relief I will see him again. Did it hurt at the time, yes, did God allow it, Nope the disease that killed him took him. Back then I did not know how to stand against sickness or disease and the devil stole my son from me. However, I am blessed to tell you I have two other great kids, but never once did I even say well God allowed this, ordained this or orchestrated this. Our Father in Heaven is not a thief, especially when we read that death is an enemy.
I think the biggest problem is we do not understand the two kingdoms we walk in on a daily basis.
I will tell you a quick story the i personally experienced as as Associate Pastor. I visited the sick on a regular basis. A couple who went to our church were traveling on Highway 169 going north at the end of their work day. A drunk driver traveling south, lost control of his vehicle, crossed the median, and landed on top of their car destroying it and putting them in the hospital for almost one year. Both of them had dozens of bones broken in their bodies, died numerous times on the operating table, but in the long run they walked out of the hospital, but both are severely crippled but can still drive. Here is the kicker and we butted heads over this and they ended up leaving the church.
They both started a ministry and went around our state telling everyone about how good God was to send a drunk to destroy their car and lives so they could minister the gospel to people. In the middle of their testimony at our church I shut them down and I very calmly said, the goodness of this accident is God preserved your life, but he did not send this on you to be a witness for him. God would have been very content if you had been witnessing for him prior to the accident and he darn sure did not send a drunk to get you to minister for him. Satan tried to take you out is what actually happened. However, they continued to spread their poison that God was the one who did this to them and it infected and discouraged many people who were trying to believe God for healing. It caused them to doubt God, his goodness and worse, they did not stand for healing because they thought they were resisting the will of God. This type of testimony is poison to the body of Christ and the world. It literally says, come serve my God, he will cripple you, destroy your life, use a drunk to teach you life lessons. Isn't he such a loving Father?
I also say this and its an old saying, if God is the one making you sick, why are you resisting God and taking medicine? Just think about it. Yes we suffer failings in our walk, there are some things I have missed thinking I was believing correctly, and did not see the results I was believing for or better said, I thought I was believing for, but never once have I said, God did this to me, he used darkness to teach a child of light.
Just think about it.
